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When the US Supreme Court decided last year to extend full First Amendment protections to video games, many likely thought that was the last word on potential legal assaults on the medium. That's not the case though, as an Oklahoma lawmaker has now proposed a special tax to be focused on "violent video games."

Democrat Will Fourkiller has introduced HB2696 (full text, RTF download link), proposing to add a one percent excise tax on all "violent video games." The text defines that term as "a video or computer game that has received a rating from the Entertainment Software Rating Board of Teen, Mature or Adult[s] Only."

Such a broad definition would also rope in T-rated titles like Ultimate Card Games on the Nintendo DS (noted solely for "Simulated Gambling" by the ESRB), and Wii title Robocalypse: Beaver Defense (which the ESRB says features "cartoon violence, crude humor and suggestive themes.")

This game would be subject to an additional tax under the law. A DVD of Inglourious Basterds would not.

Telegames

Proceeds from the new tax would go towards two new state funds devoted to childhood outdoor education and bullying prevention. Fourkiller told Oklahoma TV station KFOR that such funding was only appropriate, citing unspecified research showing video game playing being linked to obesity and bullying. There's even a game called Bully, Fourkiller pointed out, a situation he reportedly found unbelievable.

"A gentleman shot a police officer and stole his car. He had been playing Grand Theft Auto," Fourkiller went on to tell the station, likely referring to a 2003 case against Ohio's Dustin Lynch. Lynch's case was a favorite cause of former Florida lawyer and anti-game-violence activist Jack Thompson, who was also instrumental in pushing for an Oklahoma law seeking to limit violent game sales to minors. That law, passed in 2006, was struck down by an Oklahoma District Court in 2007.

"Not everybody is going to react the same," Fourkiller said, "but I believe after hours and hours of watching the screen, playing the video game, being that person and taking on that role, people get desensitized." (Fourkiller has yet to respond to a request for further comment from Ars Technica).

The Entertainment Software Association is very critical of the legislation. "We are disappointed that even in the wake of an overwhelming decision in the United States Supreme Court finding proposals such as this to be patently unconstitutional, there are those who still try to attack video game with outdated notions of our industry," ESA VP Dan Hewitt told Ars. "Taxing First Amendment protected material based on its content is misguided."

The bill is being proposed under "emergency" rules because it is "immediately necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health and safety," according to the text. After being read on the House floor next week, the bill will need majority votes in both the Oklahoma House of Representatives and Senate before being sent to the governor. After that, if it doesn't receive a three-fourths majority in both houses, it will be put on a November ballot to be approved or rejected by Oklahoma voters.

New Mexico tried to pass a similar tax on violent games in 2008, to provide an estimated $4 million in annual funding to the "Leave No Child Inside" initiative. That effort failed to find majority support in the state legislature.

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Kyle Orland
Kyle is the Senior Gaming Editor at Ars Technica, specializing in video game hardware and software. He has journalism and computer science degrees from University of Maryland. He is based in the Washington, DC area. Emailkyle.orland@arstechnica.com//Twitter@KyleOrl

A 1% tax doesn't sound so bad. The way they are asking for it is pretty dumb though. What I see is that politicians see all the money that goes toward video games and they want a bigger slice of that. IMO they should create a Call of Duty tax. That way, they would get the money they so want for those programs and no one would complain. I mean don't CoD players pay $15 for map packs? I think thay wouldn't mind the tax.

Meh, we have sin taxes on booze and smokes, we use funds from gambling for education all the time, why not video games? They are a luxury item and nobody is saying you buy can't them...

Sin taxes are usually to help cover the costs to society that those things cause, like lung cancer or drunk driving. Videogames aren't really shown to cause society problems.

The bill's author claims that videogames cause bullying and obesity, so in terms of a sin tax this seems right on. I would be surprised if he has done the research and can cite actual peer reviewed studies on that, but it is what he believes.

Sin taxes are usually to help cover the costs to society that those things cause, like lung cancer or drunk driving. Videogames aren't really shown to cause society problems.

The bill's author claims that videogames cause bullying and obesity, so in terms of a sin tax this seems right on. I would be surprised if he has done the research and can cite actual peer reviewed studies on that, but it is what he believes.

Yeah, the same way it was "right on" to investigate comic book publishers on the basis of one psychologist's book on how triangular shadows in the pictures look like a lady's crotch.

Watching Congress work drives me to more violence than any video game I've played.

Me Too !!!And F#CK OFF WILL Butthead Politician.More and more Government Control and bigger and bigger Government with more debt.Hey Will:Instead of picking on Games and Entertainment maybe you should say something about bad parenting !!!

Proceeds from the new tax would go towards two new state funds devoted to childhood outdoor education and bullying prevention.

Just like the lottery helps to pay for education, I bet.

EDIT - since two or three comments above seem to actually think stuff like this does pay for whatever, IT ALMOST NEVER DOES, or when it does, the amount tax'd vs actually given to whatever is rediculously small. Your lottery isnt helping education at all, and this won't help bullying or fat kids, or the bullying of fat kids.

Quote:

Fourkiller told Oklahoma TV station KFOR that such funding was only appropriate, citing unspecified research showing video game playing being linked to obesity and bullying. There's even a game called Bully, Fourkiller pointed out, a situation he reportedly found unbelievable.

"A gentleman shot a police officer and stole his car. He had been playing Grand Theft Auto," Fourkiller went on to tell the station

really? REALLY? I actually LOL'd when I saw the GTA reference...

Quote:

Democrat Will Fourkiller has introduced

What an unfortunate last name for a lawmaker... is it possible his last name has caused some psychological reason for him to want to go down this road?

Proceeds from the new tax would go towards two new state funds devoted to childhood outdoor education and bullying prevention.

Just like the lottery helps to pay for education, I bet.

Quote:

Fourkiller told Oklahoma TV station KFOR that such funding was only appropriate, citing unspecified research showing video game playing being linked to obesity and bullying. There's even a game called Bully, Fourkiller pointed out, a situation he reportedly found unbelievable.

"A gentleman shot a police officer and stole his car. He had been playing Grand Theft Auto," Fourkiller went on to tell the station

really? REALLY? I actually LOL'd when I saw the GTA reference...

Quote:

Democrat Will Fourkiller has introduced

What an unfortunate last name for a lawmaker... is it possible his last name has caused some psychological reason for him to want to go down this road?

As a fairly liberal person who is perfectly fine with paying taxes and kind of wishes many of them would go up to pay for the programs being cut I just have to say: Can we please stop taxing random things that many people don't use and go back to taxing stuff that affects us all (or close to all of us)?

You know, property and income. Sure, tax gas to pay for roads, that makes great sense (in fact, triple it so that it actually pays for highways and interstates and wheel taxes can then go to cities). But candy, cigs, rental cars (which encourage people to buy crap cars instead of occasionally renting one), hotels, restaurants, and all other luxury taxes I'm getting sick of.

Mother of God. Mine eyes, they bleed! Also, he looks like a different person in every picture. . .

Just to toss it out there, I think his son's name is a bit unusual. I question any parent who names their children abnormally, it's nothing but a giant target on the kid's back for at least the first 18 years.

I'd also like a tax on blatantly bad drivers who appear to have aquired their license from the back of a cereal box. [sarcasm] What's that? You want to turn right at a round-about without indicating such that the car coming from the opposite direction crashes into you because they logically assumed you were going straight? No worries! [/sarcasm]

Mother of God. Mine eyes, they bleed! Also, he looks like a different person in every picture. . .

Just to toss it out there, I think his son's name is a bit unusual. I question any parent who names their children abnormally, it's nothing but a giant target on the kid's back for at least the first 18 years.

The violence in modern video games is down right repulsive. The disgusting detail to which the violence is portrayed is on the rise; It seems that each new title is content with pushing the enveloper even further.

I would like to do everything I can to make such sick and twisted content not end up in video 'games,' but laws like this are not going to achieve anything. People first need to get over their sick blood lust and simply stop buying such titles.

It's such a crappy situation, how do you get people to stop wanting to imagine themselves doing such appalling things. Perhaps if these people where exposed to real violence they would not be so giddy to reenact it.

I have another question though, not related ... So reenacting violence dose not make you more violent, right? So then how dose looking at kiddy porn make you rape kids? I mean if you agree with the first bit wouldn't you kinda be a hypocrite if you also agreed with the second bit?

Quote:

This game would be subject to an additional tax under the law. A DVD of Inglourious Basterds would not.

Proceeds from the new tax would go towards two new state funds devoted to childhood outdoor education and bullying prevention.

Just like the lottery helps to pay for education, I bet.

EDIT - since two or three comments above seem to actually think stuff like this does pay for whatever, IT ALMOST NEVER DOES, or when it does, the amount tax'd vs actually given to whatever is rediculously small. Your lottery isnt helping education at all, and this won't help bullying or fat kids, or the bullying of fat kids.

Let me get his straight, our tax dollars don't go toward the programs we think they do. The solution for this is to not tax things. That's your argument? Really?

Meh, we have sin taxes on booze and smokes, we use funds from gambling for education all the time, why not video games? They are a luxury item and nobody is saying you buy can't them...

Sin taxes are usually to help cover the costs to society that those things cause, like lung cancer or drunk driving. Videogames aren't really shown to cause society problems.

The bill's author claims that videogames cause bullying and obesity, so in terms of a sin tax this seems right on. I would be surprised if he has done the research and can cite actual peer reviewed studies on that, but it is what he believes.

A tax on video games in general would make more sense - E-rated games aren't somehow less likely to cause obesity. And it'd have a much better chance of actually being enacted, since the First Amendment's pretty much taken out of the picture at that point.

Personally, I propose a minimum intelligence for both politicians and voters.

Also, an age limit. Seems like all our politicians are elected by elderly people, so they pander to the ethics and values held by older generations, no matter how obsolete they may be. Kids need to get out and vote, and old people need to be kept from voting.

I have another question though, not related ... So reenacting violence dose not make you more violent, right? So then how dose looking at kiddy porn make you rape kids? I mean if you agree with the first bit wouldn't you kinda be a hypocrite if you also agreed with the second bit?

That argument is completely irrelevant. Real children are forced to have sex with adults against their will to make kiddie porn. No real violence takes place during the making of a video game.

Personally, I propose a minimum intelligence for both politicians and voters.

Also, an age limit. Seems like all our politicians are elected by elderly people, so they pander to the ethics and values held by older generations, no matter how obsolete they may be. Kids need to get out and vote, and old people need to be kept from voting.

Who else should we keep from voting? It's shame that the value of democracy has been lost.

I agree with the sentiments posted here, but I suspect he either isn't as clueless as people perceive him to be or he's just preying on people's fears who are clueless about the effects of violent video games. (possibly both) He's trying to make a name for himself.

The violence in modern video games is down right repulsive. The disgusting detail to which the violence is portrayed is on the rise; It seems that each new title is content with pushing the enveloper even further.

I would like to do everything I can to make such sick and twisted content not end up in video 'games,' but laws like this are not going to achieve anything. People first need to get over their sick blood lust and simply stop buying such titles.

It's such a crappy situation, how do you get people to stop wanting to imagine themselves doing such appalling things. Perhaps if these people where exposed to real violence they would not be so giddy to reenact it.

I have another question though, not related ... So reenacting violence dose not make you more violent, right? So then how dose looking at kiddy porn make you rape kids? I mean if you agree with the first bit wouldn't you kinda be a hypocrite if you also agreed with the second bit?

Quote:

This game would be subject to an additional tax under the law. A DVD of Inglourious Basterds would not.

Also, What dose a video game tax have to do with DVDs?

First, I'd like to point out your comment about CP is not only disturbing that you went there, but also makes no sense. Does re-enacting violence make you more violent? No. Does looking at CP make you rape kids? UM WTF? I would assume being messed up in the head is a pre-requisite to looking at CP, which I doubt you could say about people who play games. SMH

Second, the author of the article is pointing out DVDs are violent, and should thus be treated equally in the situation of taxing violent media.

Thirdly, video games have ratings for a reason. If you see "repulsive" content, you are more than likely looking at a Mature game, which as it explains in the rating, is for MATURE people. People who don't sit around "imagining" anything. They are people who worked their rears off all day and want to come home and shut their brain off. They're not meant for kids in any way. Any person who plays a video game and starts thinking, "Oooh, that looks like my classmate/co-worker" BANG BANG, was already messed up from the get go.

I will note, however, that many a vicious Tetris matches have kept me from strangling people as daft as you.

In my opinion the part of this that I find most unappealing is the linking of a tax to a project. Legislation should raise revenue (how and all that is of course up for much debate) and legislation should fund projects, but the two should not be linked. Do bullying and obesity projects need funding? This is a valid debate for Oklahoma, and the answer might be yes and it should be so much $$$. Should video games be taxed additionally? This too is a debate for Oklahoma, and how much should not be based on some "save the children" but rather on the merits of why you are taxing.

Meh, we have sin taxes on booze and smokes, we use funds from gambling for education all the time, why not video games? They are a luxury item and nobody is saying you buy can't them...

I'm not opposed to 'sin taxes' in general, however the taxes on booze and smokes apply universally. When it comes to video games the politicians focus on the 'violent' video games only, which as the SCOTUS ruled last year is unconstitutional.

It's an all or none thing, and these politicians realize that trying to legislate every video game in that manner just won't win them any points with the populace, or the industry, or the retailers. As cdclndc said up there, it's fairly disgusting what these people try to do.